


Gymnastics/Tae Kwon Do

by TaraTyler



Series: Wynonna Earp/WayHaught [10]
Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-02
Updated: 2019-04-25
Packaged: 2019-09-05 22:36:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16819804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TaraTyler/pseuds/TaraTyler
Summary: Nicole Haught teaches Tae Kwon Do in the same building where Waverly Earp coaches Gymnastics





	1. Part 1

Nicole had spent the last eight years of her life training in the same Tae Kwon Do school. The floors felt soft and worn in beneath her feet, made that way for the sole purpose of cushioning the blow when a student would take a fall. She felt more at home there than she did in her own home. With one solid lift from the legs and the shoulders, Nicole picked up the punching bag and hung it on the chain dangling from the ceiling. She turned towards the back of the room and tied the long black belt around her waist tightly.

Music played softly in the background and Nicole tried to allow it to wash over her, and dismiss some of her anxiety. Outside of the glass wall separating the training room from the day camp, what seemed like over a hundred knee-high children running around and making all kinds of noise. She had gotten to the school a little under an hour before any classes were set to begin. She had been hoping to work out her aggressions before students arrived, but was having trouble settling into the correct headspace. With an eye-roll, and feeling utterly ridiculous for doing it alone; Nicole turned towards the front of the room and the flags/mirror hung there, settled to sit in a kneeling position with her hands and eyes closed, fists on top of her thighs and began to meditate in the relatively quiet and empty room.

Her breaths went deep and even as she finally began to settle down. It wasn’t the world’s most comfortable sitting position and had taken years to get adjusted to, but now it had become one of her favorite parts of the day. This was when Nicole took the time to ground herself and empty her mind of the stresses or burdens she carried before committing herself once more to her training.

“Oh, I uh, sorry I didn’t realize anyone was in here. One of the campers said she left her lunch box. Do you mind if I get it? I didn’t mean to interrupt your… whatever you were doing. I’m sorry.” a voice broke through the silence and interrupted Nicole’s peaceful reverie. Nicole’s eyes snapped open to see the young woman peeking into the studio room.

Quickly, she stumbled to her feet, bowing quite suddenly to the front of the room, almost as though it were an afterthought. Nicole rushed up to the girl, shaking the meditation off.

“I, uhm sure, sorry.” Nicole stuttered back. When she had decided to meditate, Nicole had not dared to dream she would have opened her eyes to a beautiful woman. She was stunned and found her tongue was completely tied.

She was shorter than Nicole in a Rock Gym t-shirt that had been cut off at the bottom to turn it into a crop-top. Long honey brown hair was loose down her back in waves, ending just above where her purple and black yoga pants began. Nicole found herself blown away by the charming smile and the barest hint of abs revealed between the shirt and pants. This counselor was truly gorgeous and Nicole was reminded of how very gay she was.

“I’ve seen you here before, but I haven’t had a chance to introduce myself.” the girl retrieved the lunchbox and turned to the redhead. “My name is Waverly Earp. I’m one of the camp counselors and a gymnastics coach.”

Waverly grinned and put her hand out in an outstandingly charming gesture. Her eyes twinkled in a manner unseen in people who didn’t already know the person they were speaking to. Nicole automatically liked her.

“Nicole, Nicole Haught.” she shook Waverly’s hand with a firm but gentle grip. “I feel like I ought to have a hat to tip to you or something.”

Waverly laughed lightly and there was a musical, wonderful quality to it. “Yes, I could definitely see that. ” Waverly grinned back and Nicole found she was totally taken by the other woman.

“I have decided to take that as a compliment.” Nicole said with a definitive tone, taking a turn towards thoughtful. It only made Waverly laugh harder.

“Good, you really should.” Waverly continued to smile and Nicole felt truly blessed. “I guess I had better get this back and get to my kids again.”

“Sure, yeah, I get it.” Nicole said immediately. She hated the idea of Waverly leaving, despite having just met her. Something about the girl made Nicole feel lighter and happier. “I have students coming soon. Feel free to pop by whenever, though.”

Nicole straightened out her uniform, wanting to look as professional as possible, pulling her long red hair back up into a high ponytail. Waverly took a deep breath as she did so, taking a long look at the beautiful woman who seemed dedicated and in love with what she did. She didn’t quite know what to do about how she was feeling or even how to put the words together inside of herself. There was something about this woman that resonated with Waverly and she hoped she could see that reflected in Nicole’s eyes. Waverly hoped they might be very good friends one day.


	2. Part 2

Nicole was throwing kicks at the punching bag as though it had personally offended her. Small flakes of fluff littered the floor around her feet, leaking from the stitches in the canvas. Small drops of sweat mixed around the dust, her red hair sticking to the back of her neck. When she jumped and kicked, her feet cleared the floor by at least a foot. The impact made the mirrors on the walls shudder with a tremendous rattling sound.

Nicole’s legs burned as though the muscles themselves had been set on fire. Her frustrations disappeared and became null as she worked to knock the bag off of the hook and even across the room. People didn’t understand why she loved this so much or where any of the fun came in. This wasn’t the fun part. This was the therapy part.

This was when Nicole put all of her anger and her hurts and her melancholy into demolishing this inanimate object. It had been a hard day at work and then a second hard day at home. Now that she was finally here, in her safe space, Nicole planned to push herself all of the way to the very edge. Her legs would give out underneath her eventually and maybe then everything would finally feel somewhat okay again.

“Uhm, Ms. Haught?” Waverly, the camp counselor asked. Her eyes betrayed her concern as she leaned against the doorframe. “You are acting like that punching bag kicked your puppy or something.”

Nicole had already been mid-jump, her leg snapping out into a roundhouse kick when she caught a glimpse of Waverly in the doorway. Without pause, she dropped like a stone out of the air and hit the floor with a smack. All of the air left her lungs in a rush, almost painfully. It was gone once more when Waverly’s face appeared above her. The girl really needed some kind of dimmer switch for her eyes and/or her smile when she looked at Nicole.

“Oh my God, are you okay?” Waverly asked her voice surprised and concerned. “That looked like a pretty hard hit there.”

“I’m fine.” Nicole growled lowly, pushing herself up to her feet and ignoring the hand Waverly offered. “It’s just an addition to an already truly shitty day.”

“I’m so sorry if I surprised you somehow or… I’m just sorry you’re having such a crappy day. Can I help, somehow?” Waverly asked and she was just so sweet Nicole had no idea what to do or say.

“I don’t think there’s anything you can do, Coach.” Nicole’s voice was tired and maybe even a little sad. “I just come in on the off days sometimes to work through the bad days. Sorry, if it bothered you guys.”

“No, I just saw the look on your face and heard you shaking the room. Though maybe you could use someone to talk to or even just sit with you for a while and I was already off for the day.” Waverly said with a small smile. She had the kindest eyes Nicole had ever seen.

“You can sit with me if you want, but I can’t promise you that it would be at all entertaining.” Nicole chuckled darkly. “Unless that’s the sort of thing you’re into, Coach.”

Nicole’s tone was teasing but Waverly agreed wholeheartedly… and it felt like a punch in the gut. There was a twinkle in those eyes that suggested she might know it too. Waverly swallowed hard when she caught her gaze again. She sat down on the weight bench wordlessly and gestured back to the classroom. Nicole grinned and flipped herself up to her feet once more. It was plain that she was showing off, but neither of them gave any indication that they cared, Nicole’s music still playing in the background.


	3. Part 3

Waverly had a student climbing across her shoulders when Nicole caught a glimpse of the other woman from across the building. A bright smile lit up her face and Nicole just knew her whiskey gold eyes were twinkling. Despite the cold outdoors, everyone inside wore the barebones amount of clothing they could. Waverly still seemed to radiate warmth, in her tank top and shorts, always with at least an inch of midriff exposed. Though she was a little too warm, Nicole felt a shiver run down her spine.

Nicole’s students were rushing into the changing rooms, as she leaned against the doorframe leading into the training room, a watchful eye following them all. Waverly noticed her and waved to her with a brilliantly charming grin. Nicole waved back, doing her best to not seem overly enthusiastic. Waverly had a tendency to bring out Nicole’s inner awkward tween. She would forget how to be smooth, how to hold herself, or how to be a functioning human in general.

Waverly Earp, coaching her students towards the front of the building, felt like a light at Nicole’s back even though she couldn’t see the other girl from her vantage point. They didn’t know one another well, yet, but Nicole liked knowing the other girl was there. She was comforted by her mere presence. Every break Nicole got, she would at the very least enjoy a glance at Waverly.

She was completely exhausted by the time her classes were finished. Nicole was doused completely in sweat. She pulled off the top portion of her Taekwondo uniform, leaving her in a tank top and loose linen-adjacent pant. Turning only slightly to get a look into the giant mirror along the wall, Nicole re-tied her hair up into a severe braid close to the back of her head. Despite her exhaustion, Nicole was avoiding going home, so for the first time in forever she decided to stick around and do a thorough cleaning job of the classroom and the changing rooms.  
The building had completely emptied by that point, except for the telltale music coming from the far side. The tunes weren’t bad, so Nicole didn’t mind as she tiredly forced herself to focus on cleaning. She was completely exhausted when she finished. Nicole plopped down on the squishiest mat she could find in the gymnastics section just to reset herself before leaving for home. Trying not to fall asleep on accident, Nicole glanced over to the source of the music. She was pleasantly surprised by the view she saw.

Waverly Earp was dancing, alone and completely lost in the music. Her eyes open and focused, but she wasn’t completely aware of her surroundings. Nicole had never seen someone with such a masterful control of their body. She was a beautiful blur that did not stop moving until the music slowed and come to a halt. Nicole clapped softly as she stepped forward to let Waverly know she was there.

“That was beautiful. Have you been working on that piece for long?” Nicole asked, unsure of the proper terms to use in regard to Waverly’s performance. All of the words and phrases which came to her seemed unworthy or cheezy. She was scared Waverly would assume Nicole had been sticking around just to watch or that she would seem predatory or creepy somehow when in reality she was just in awe.

“Not really. I’m just going through the motions… whatever feels good, whatever comes to mind and seems right in the moment. You’re here later than usual.” Waverly was surprised to find that she wasn’t alone and a bit bashful at having been seen dancing. Mostly, she just wished she wasn’t covered in a thin sheen of sweat, chalk dust and grime. Her dance class was cut short and the empty floor had beckoned. Waverly glowed with pride at Nicole’s praise.

“Do you dance like that often?” Nicole asked. “When it’s late here and you’re alone?”

Nicole really didn’t mean to sound at all strange or creepy. She just didn’t like the idea of Waverly being in the building or the parking lot late at night. Waverly seemed completely capable of taking care of herself, but she was still only one person. Waverly wasn’t a very big or threatening kind of person either, and the building was in a pretty rough part of town. Nicole didn’t get a good feeling about the situation. She thought Waverly was taking unnecessary risks.

“All of the time, actually. Almost every night.” Waverly admitted almost bashfully. “What about you? When was the last time you got to dance?” She asked with a tender expression and a glimmer of laughter in her eyes. Nicole got the feeling she knew where Waverly was going with this.

“Uhm, high school probably. It’s not really my thing… and watching you really only reinforces that notion.” Nicole replied, leaving out the few times being home alone, belting out at the top of her lungs and dancing wildly just for the stress relief. She figured that didn’t really count anyway.

“Dancing isn’t really meant to be a performance art.” Waverly corrected Nicole as she reached forward, taking both of the redhead’s hands and leading her out onto the blue springboard floor. “Anyone can dance. The technicalities aren’t important. It’s only important that it comes from the heart.”

Nicole was struck by the words, but her heart rate picked up in response to Waverly’s smiles and her hands warmly grasping her own. She knew next to nothing about dancing and her long limbs were more of a hindrance than a help. Waverly pulled her in a bit closer and led Nicole across the floor as the music changed. The redhead swallowed hard. She stumbled over her own feet more than once, but Waverly only smiled gently and continued to lead her through a couple more songs.

“If you’re this good on a dance floor, it must be amazing to see you go full blast on a floor routine.” Nicole commented, reaching out and twirling Waverly with a laugh. 

Nicole took a while to relax and allow herself to be guided and to sink into the music. Her legs were still sore, but she was having so much fun by then that she didn’t mind. Waverly could see the difference in her, she had relaxed into the music, her hips had actually begun to move and a smile had grown across her face. Finally the other woman was having fun along with her. Waverly’s own heart stuttered in response.

Nicole was so strong and Waverly had seen her decimate opponents and her board breaks, but those same hands were so gentle in her own hands. Nicole spun Waverly away from her and the younger Earp couldn't help a giggle. Nicole pulled her back and Waverly halted with a solid thump, her back hitting Nicole’s front as the taller girl caught her. Strong arms looped around her middle and she felt her breath leave her body. Chills ran up and down her spine. Waverly met Nicole’s for a long moment and Nicole released her, feeling almost frozen under the weight of the gaze.

“I, uhm, would you like me to accompany you to your car? Just to make sure you get there safely, it’s gotten pretty late.” Nicole offered still feeling awkward. Waverly laughed and stepped away before gathering her things and accepting the hand she was offered. This was such a Nicole thing to do… and Waverly could feel herself falling further and further.


	4. Chapter 4

Waverly Earp was still dancing on the main gymnasium floor when Nicole was getting her things together to leave for the night. Her last class had left at 7:15 and the other teachers had left shortly thereafter. She had volunteered to stay and finish clean-up. The gymnasts had all gone home as well by the time she finished. As soon as they were gone, Nicole heard the bass emitting from the other side of the building.

Nicole was fond of sticking around to watch Waverly do her thing. She wasn’t comfortable with leaving a young woman alone in the building like this either, no matter how many times Waverly said she had been doing this for the past couple of years with no problems. The gym wasn’t in a good part of their town. While Nicole was also technically a young woman, she was also a martial artist and confident in her abilities to handle herself in combat. She was less sure of Waverly’s. It made for a solid excuse to wait around and watch until she was sure Waverly was safe in her car.

Nicole changed into regular clothes, re-tied her hair up into a ponytail, and went to find a spot on a mat to hang out and watch. Waverly had told her more than once that she didn’t mind the audience of one, but Nicole still waved shyly when she was noticed. Nicole watched as Waverly spun a full 360* and kicked straight up in time with the music’s crashing drum beats, as though she were fighting an invisible opponent. She thought it was beautiful, though not a very accurate representation of a real fight. When she discarded that thought, Nicole enjoyed watching the dance a lot.

The music came to a close with a singular resounding note as Waverly rose up victorious. She ran over to hit pause before joining Nicole.

“What did you think?” she asked her observer, eyes hopeful. Nicole was always astonished that Waverly would care about what she thought. It wasn’t as though she knew anything about the art beyond her capability to appreciate it.

“It was beautiful!” Nicole replied automatically. Waverly didn’t usually ask for her input, so she tried to avoid letting her surprise show through. “There was great energy to it and I particularly enjoyed the fighting aspects once I made myself stop looking at it with my teacher-mode brain.”

“Oh, but I don’t want you to turn off that part! I want you to help me make it look more realistic.” Waverly said. “I don’t know a thing about fighting, so I thought I could take advantage of your experience since you insist on being here anyway.”

“Really? You know I know next to nothing about dancing. Using actual techniques might take some of the ‘pretty’ out of it. We don’t point our toes.” Nicole warned her, though the idea did sound more fun the longer she thought about it.

“I’ll modify what I need to, to make it fit into this context. I’ve been kicking this idea around for a while, and with your help, it actually just might work.” Waverly’s grin was growing more and more wicked with her excitement. Nicole smiled back.

“Alright, I guess I’m in.” she replied, knowing she never could have said no anyway.

\-----/////-----

“In Tae Kwon Do at least, after a punch or a kick, we return our fists, palms facing up to our sides. If in the dance, whatever technique you use is a counter, try to be sure that the viewer can at least guess what happened to provoke your movement. From what I can tell, you want us to have a mental image of your opponent, right?” Nicole said in a rare case of word vomit after watching the routine through once more. She found herself anxious as to how Waverly would take what she had to say. Nicole despised the idea of somehow making the other girl mad at her. She watched Waverly’s face carefully.

“That’s exactly what I meant to do!” Waverly perked up a bit and repeated the motion Nicole had demonstrated to her, contemplating where, how, and if it would fit into this dance.

“Can you go through it again, without music, and tell me what it is you were reacting to?” Nicole asked. Waverly turned thoughtful and beckoned to the taller girl to follow her out onto the floor.

Performing the routine with a partner who wasn’t also dancing seemed more than a bit ridiculous. Nicole found herself having much more fun than she expected. She followed Waverly’s lead and did her best to interject when she felt it was absolutely necessary. They ran through the piece twice more like that before Nicole watched it with Waverly alone and tried to ‘see’ her parts in the ghost images. It looked a lot cleaner if she were to say so herself.

Nicole videoed the final run-through for Waverly and only then realized that they had worked until 9:30 that night. She watched Waverly watch the video and laughed quietly to herself. Working together easily, they closed the building down before Nicole walked the other girl to her car and said goodbye. She fell into bed that night extremely pleased with the way the day had gone and dreamed of dance-fighting. Jumanji style.


	5. Chapter 5

Nicole was exhausted, sweaty, and bruised after sparring one night. She was planning to tell Waverly she didn’t want to stay for their usual after work hangout. She put her bags into her car and went back inside to find her friend. Nicole had just finished locking the door when she heard a shriek from across the building. She dropped everything, shoved her way past the door, and vaulted the beam in the middle of the building in approximately 30 seconds flat.

“Waverly .. are you okay?!” Nicole asked, barely managing to skid to a stop after her hasty race. Terror was plain in her eyes and a bead of sweat trailed down the side of her face.

Waverly’s eyes went wide and it took several moments for Nicole to process the grin and the sounds of giggles. “I am so sorry, we were just playing dodgeball.” Waverly’s apology wasn’t quite sincere, but she was also offering Nicole one of the two dodgeballs she carried under each arm.

“I sparred today, Waverly. I don't have the energy. I’m sorry.” Nicole sat back onto one of the spotting mats with a wince and a groan. When she looked back at the smaller girl, Waverly could see a green-ish purple splotch beginning to grow across her jawline. “My muscles are quite _literally_ screaming at me, but if you want me to I’ll stay until your girl’s parents get here and you’re ready to go home.”

“You don’t have to stay.” Waverly told her, holding up a hand for her two remaining gymnasts to hit pause on the game of dodgeball.

“I know that I don’t _have_ to stay, Waves. You are a very capable little woman. I am asking you if you would want me to stay with you.” Nicole gave Waverly one of those wry looks that made the coach question everything she’d been thinking.

Waverly took a moment to actually think through the questions she’d been asked and then replied. It seemed to Nicole, Waverly was choosing each word particularly before saying it out loud. She found that thought adorable and appreciated the effort and the thought.

“I’d like to keep you just for your company if you wouldn’t mind. It’s nice to be around another grown-up after all of the over-exposure to the children.” Waverly replied with a wide smile and vulnerable smiles. She wasn’t sure of how she would actually react if Nicole said no. Something about the taller redhead left her feeling raw and exposed.

“Sure, of course, I’ll stay.” Nicole leaned back to lay down across the mat and stretch for a while. Her muscles were screeching at her now every time she moved.

“Do you need some ice or something? That bruise on your jaw just looks worse every time I glance over and see it. “ Waverly spoke softly and gently reached over to tilt the uninjured side of Nicole’s face back so she could better see the bruise darkening.

“Hey, can one of you go and fix an ice pack for Nicole, real fast?” Waverly asked her kids.

“Naya’s gone home already, but I’ll be right back Coach.” she answered, pulling a hoodie on over bright pink and lime green leotard before running and vaulting the gate instead of just opening it and going through.

“What happened, Nicole?” Waverly asked, changing the angles of Nicole’s face so she could see better with the different kinds of light and see if she were hurt anywhere else. “Is there anything else I ought to see?”

“No, no, Waves. I’m fine. Just sore. God, my back is killing me. I dropped my guard for all ten seconds and it was lights out.” Nicole groaned as she spoke.

“You got knocked out? Let me see your eyes.” Waverly quickly grew alarmed again, though she could see the annoyance in Nicole’s eye-roll.

“No, really. I’m fine, Waverly. The muscles in my back… I can barely move now that I’ve been laying down for more than a minute.” Waverly could hear the strain in her voice now, and the exhaustion.

“Alright, scoot over.” Waverly gestured. “I’ll work those knots out so you can at least get home comfortably, or at least somewhat more comfortable.”

“Okay, I consent,” Nicole replied quietly as Waverly pulled the shirt farther up her shoulders so she could dig her thumbs into the tightened muscles and work out the hard as rock knots she found there. “Uggh.” She groaned as the good kind of pain began to bloom in her shoulders and back muscles. Waverly choked back a laugh and crossed her legs beneath herself into a more comfortable work position.

Waverly had given massages before on gymnasts, other coaches, and various other types of athletes. Nicole’s shoulders were right up there in terms of tightness; her muscles were well-defined in musculature, though not as nice as some of her girls’. She felt some measure of pride in the knowledge. Waverly also enjoyed the slight whimpers her work elicited and the gasp Nicole released when Abby gently slid the zip bag of ice below her hurt jawline.

“My mom’s here. I’m going to head on home too. Bye guys, thanks for hanging out with me.” Abby vaulted the fence again, but stopped at the door, looking back at the pair of women. “I hope you feel better, Ms. Nicole.”

“Bye, kiddo, see you on Monday.” Waverly called after her with a grin.

“She seems sweet.” Nicole said softly as Waverly’s thumbs dug into the muscles that lined her back. She let out a soft and appreciative sigh that Waverly did her best not to hear.

“Abby’s kind of a brat, but I love her. She has the skills to back up her smart mouth.” Waverly chuckled darkly. “I am surrounded by children and extremely moody tweens all day. That kind of sweetness is not what you’re always going to get from her.”

“I was a teenage girl once too, Waves.” Nicole laughed. “I can relate at least a little bit. Not to the high-pressure competitive environment, of course, but the... I remember the hormones and the mood swings well.”

Nicole turned over onto her back and stretched, hands over her head, smiling up at Waverly from were she was laying.

“Well, luckily you are pretty cute yourself. Thanks for staying with me.” Waverly said softly, even though they were alone in the gym now. “I’m pretty sure that I’ve gotten through the worst of your knots now.”

“Yeah, it just feels so much looser than it has in so long.” Nicole realized as she rolled her shoulders several times, eliciting loud pops from the joints that made Waverly wince before smiling down at her. “Thank you… Waverly.”

“You’re welcome.” she spoke softly as she gazed down into Nicole's face. The longer they had been sitting there speaking, the more Waverly had come closer to her. Her eyes had Nicole transfixed, holding them there with a truly steady expression. “May I?” she asked, her thumb gently brushing against Nicole’s cheek.

Nicole nodded softly, understanding instinctively what Waverly meant. She pressed back up as Waverly’s mouth tilted down to meet Nicole’s. Another hand reached up, winding itself into honey brown hair. She pulled the smaller woman down further to kiss her back with just as much ferocity. Nicole felt her whole body go warm.


End file.
